My research interest focuses on processes related to plastic degradation and fragmentation in the environment. Prior to this post-doctorate, I investigated on the emissions of greenhouse gases from plastics in the environment at the Center for Microbial Oceanography, Research and Education at the University of Hawaii. I also conducted research on pathways and the fate of marine debris in the ocean at the International Pacific Research Center at the University of Hawaii.

My goal is to pursue plastic research to understand better the degradation and fragmentation processes of plastic and its fate in the ocean with a special emphasis on microfibers and its biodegradability and geographical distribution in the ocean and in the atmosphere. My long-last objective is for policymakers to use data from scientists and volunteers to design better laws and policies to reduce plastic production & consumption from the source.

I obtained my PhD at the Institute of Marine Sciences at the University of Barcelona in biological oceanography and biogeochemistry where I started a running group in 2009 to clean our shorelines to prevent plastic items from getting into the ocean. Since then I have been involved with different organizations to protect the ocean. In 2015, I joined Sustainable Coastlines Hawaii, which is the biggest organization of beach cleanups in Hawaii. For four years I served as their science advisor and started using data collection from volunteers for citizen science projects.